Your Challenge

Storage has changed dramatically over the last several years, with organizations storing more data for longer than ever. The scalability of legacy solutions is being pushed to the limit, both in terms of capacity and performance.

Most storage administrators are stuck in firefighting mode, reacting to problems as they arise rather than effectively planning ahead.

It’s all too tempting to stick with the approach that’s been used in the past simply because it’s the most familiar option. However, this might mean sticking with a solution that hasn’t performed as well as another option might.

Our Advice

Critical Insight

Though the SAN as a technology isn’t going anywhere in the near future, emerging technologies such as flash storage, public cloud offerings, and converged systems have matured to the point where it is worth asking yourself “What if we didn’t use a SAN?”

The key to a successful storage strategy is to look both ways at once. Get a clear understanding of your environment and your requirements by opening the channels of communication with your users. At the same time, touch base with business leaders and build a forward-looking strategy that can help drive your organization’s future plans while responding nimbly to changing circumstances.

Impact and Result

Building and documenting a storage strategy can improve IT effectiveness by nearly 50%, and can enhance IT’s ability to respond to changing needs and expectations in an agile fashion.

Storage is always a major purchase. Having a strong sense of requirements and a clear idea of any future plans is the first step toward purchasing a storage solution that is driven by actual needs, not what a vendor wants to sell you.

Onsite Workshop

Book Your Workshop

Onsite workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost onsite delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.

Module 1: Make the Case for a Strategic Storage Plan

The Purpose

Understand the value of creating a storage strategy.

Identify emerging technologies that can help optimize the storage environment.

Key Benefits Achieved

An understanding of trends that will significantly affect storage.

A strategy for presenting a business case to core stakeholders for the value of optimization.

Activities:

Outputs

1.1

Challenge Analysis

Make the Case mini-deck

1.2

High level discussion of potential approaches and barriers

Module 2: Audit Your Present Storage State

The Purpose

Audit the present storage state.

Identify trouble spots in the infrastructure.

Build a list of initiatives that respond to organizational challenges.

Key Benefits Achieved

Identification of pain points and challenges currently affecting the storage environment.

Pain points are pinpointed to specific regions of the storage infrastructure.

Identification of strategic responses to storage pain points.

Activities:

Outputs

2.1

Brainstorm storage pain points

Logical storage diagram

2.2

Map trouble spots in your storage infrastructure

Physical storage diagram

2.3

Document your present storage assets

Prioritized list of reactive storage initiatives

2.4

Map your storage assets to applications

2.5

Analyze pain points and isolate trouble spots

2.6

Construct a physical storage diagram and document feedback

2.7

Analyze the physical storage diagram to diagnose trouble spots

2.8

Turn storage trouble spots into IT initiatives

2.9

Categorize initiatives according to criticality

Module 3: Build a Strategy That’s Ready for the Road Ahead

The Purpose

Strategize responses to strategic business initiatives that will affect storage.

Plan the blue-sky storage vision.

Key Benefits Achieved

Storage environment is transformed into a business enabler.

Documentation of desired storage initiatives to assist in long-term planning.

Activities:

Outputs

3.1

Identify the business impact of disruptive trends

Blue-sky list of storage initiatives

3.2

Turn disruptive trends into IT initiatives

3.3

Align storage strategy with business initiatives

3.4

Categorize your initiatives according to criticality

3.5

Draft your blue-sky storage vision

Module 4: Perform a Gap Analysis to Determine Your Storage Strategy

The Purpose

Define new storage solutions and initiatives and identify transition requirements.

Calculate total costs of proposed initiatives.

Formulate a project timeline.

Key Benefits Achieved

Develops a realistic list of storage initiatives for the coming year that meet organizational requirements and restrictions.

Creates a plan for implementing initiatives that will optimize the storage environment.